Aerosol delivered paints, among other products, have been available in the marketplace for many years. One of the earliest known aerosol dispensers was that patented by Goodhue et al, U.S. Pat. No. 2,331,117 issued Oct. 5, 1943. Many advances have been made since the 1950s when aerosols were first commercially introduced. Typical of the more recent apparatuses for the delivery by aerosol is one as invented by lib: Paul O'Neill and disclosed in his patent, U.S. Pat. No. 5,507,420 issued Apr. 16, 1996. While the spray can, --another term commonly associated with aerosol cans, -- of that patent is reusable, other patented spray cans are not. That is, after a one time distribution of the contents, the can is discarded.
This O'Neill patent and the plethora of others that pertain to spray paint cans, and other spray deliveries for fluids pertain to either new modes via delivery of propellant, new modes of storage of the vehicle, and/or new modes of the storage of the concentrate or fluid to be delivered by the vehicle (propellant).
The operating principle for an aerosol can is the presence of a liquefied or compressed gas such as butane or nitrogen, which may be partly liquefied by the internal pressure of the can exerts pressure on the product within the can. The nozzle when actuated, acts as a pressure release and product exits the nozzle. A layer of free gas is either above the liquid or gaseous product to be delivered, or along side and then introduced above the product to put pressure on the product to be delivered. When the valve is actuated, the pressure is relieved and the product comes up a dip tube connected to the valve to exit as a spray. Shaving cream cans which house a viscous liquid soap, work slightly differently. The differences need not be discussed here, since they are discussed supra.
A wide variety of products is available in the market place packaged in an aerosol delivery can. Thus mention can be made of whipped dairy cream and shaving cream, caulking compositions, aftershave and cologne, paint, air fresheners, body deodorants, cleaning compositions and many, many more.
Double delivery systems are not unknown in the world of technology. Thus a search of the prior art revealed the following fluid delivery systems that were double ended:
Chamberlain U.S. Pat. No. 2,080,602, issued May 18, 1937 discloses a desk top vessel that can be oriented either horizontally or vertically for fluid delivery though a pair of spouts.
Mahar U.S. Pat. No. 3,200,998 discloses a liquefied gas cylinder with a pair of valves, one to dispense liquefied gas in a liquefied state, and one to dispense it in a gaseous state.
Another patent that provides a double closure is that of Beres et al U.S. Pat. No. 3,283,785 issued Nov. 8, 1966. In this structure the two valve structures are different. Here one valve was a slide type valve and the other an abutting valve.
A more recent patent is, that of the Silvenis structure, U.S. Pat. No. 4,618,076 dated Oct. 21, 1986 for a dispensing bottle such as is utilized for household liquid cleaning agents. One valve is a valve to spray the contents, the other is an opening to permit pouring contents onto a rag or other surface. The Habora & Hail U.S. Pat. No. 5,541,581 issued Aug. 6, 1996 operates in like manner with different structure.
An ophthalmic solution dispenser having dual valves one for entry and one for egress is claimed in Allegretti, U.S. Pat. No. 5,002,206 issued Mar. 26, 1991. This is used for the introduction of a second ingredient into a chamber to be mixed with the contents of the chamber and then dispensed.
Even a double ended ketchup dispenser has been invented. See Ehrbar U.S. Pat. No. 5,421,488 issued Jun. 6, 1995.
Thus it is seen that in various industries there is indeed a need for a dual ended dispenser. However to date no double ended aerosol can is known to exist, yet the need for same is evident.
It is an object therefore of this invention, to provide an aerosol dispenser that is double ended; that is, has a spray head on both opposite ends of the can.
It is another object to provide an aerosol dispenser that has two dispensing tips each of which has a different spray pattern to deliver the same or different product.
It is still another object to provide an aerosol can that can deliver two different but related products from the same dispenser each through its own dispenser tip.
It is a yet further object to provide a dual ended aerosol dispenser which utilizes a single source of propellant.
Other objects of the invention will in part be obvious and will in part appear hereinafter.
The invention accordingly comprises the device possessing the features properties and the relation of components which are exemplified in the following detailed disclosure and the scope of the application of which will be indicated in the appended claims.
For a fuller understanding of the nature and objects of the invention reference should be made to the following detailed description, taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.